Rebel Without a Crew
Encyclopedia
Robert Rodriguez
Robert Anthony Rodríguez is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer, editor and musician. He shoots and produces many of his films in his native Texas and Mexico. He has directed such films as Desperado, From Dusk till Dawn, The Faculty, Spy Kids, Sin City, Planet...
. Presented in a diary format, Rebel details Rodriguez' beginnings as a young filmmaker; his stint at a medical testing facility to raise money for a feature film; the making of that film (El Mariachi
El Mariachi
El Mariachi is a 1992 Mexican-American action film that is the debut of writer/director Robert Rodriguez. The Spanish language film was shot in the northern Mexican bordertown of Ciudad Acuña with a mainly amateur cast...
) for $7,000, and his subsequent experiences in Hollywood selling the film and going to film festival
Film festival
A film festival is an organised, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theaters or screening venues, usually in a single locality. More and more often film festivals show part of their films to the public by adding outdoor movie screenings...
s promoting it.
Later editions of the book also feature one of Rodriguez' tutorials on low-budget filmmaking ("Ten Minute Film School") and the screenplay to El Mariachi.
Influence
Rodriguez' rags-to-riches story, detailed in Rebel, as well as his vociferous support of low-budget techniques (such as digital cinematographyDigital cinematography
Digital cinematography is the process of capturing motion pictures as digital images, rather than on film. Digital capture may occur on video tape, hard disks, flash memory, or other media which can record digital data. As digital technology has improved, this practice has become increasingly common...
) to allow anyone to make a movie cheaply, have made him an icon of modern independent film
Independent film
An independent film, or indie film, is a professional film production resulting in a feature film that is produced mostly or completely outside of the major film studio system. In addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies, independent films are also produced...
making.